Hrólfr Kraki Beowulf and Bjarki Where is beowolf from? Beowulf comes from Geatland (= Gotaland) What does Beowolf do? the hero Beowulf aids Eadgils in Eadgils' war against Onela.
What does beowulf mean?
What does beowulf mean?
The standard view is that, if Beowulf himself has a 'cognate' character in Rolf Kraki's story, it is Bodvar Bjarki (Bodvar Biarke), who also has a younger companion, Hjalti (Hialte) - perhaps matching the Beowulf character Wiglaf. Beowulf comes from Geatland (= Gotaland) and one of Bodvar Bjarki's elder brothers, Thorir, becomes a king of Gotaland. Moreover, like Beowulf, Bodvar Bjarki arrives in Denmark from Gotaland (Geatland), and upon arriving in Denmark he kills a beast that has been ravaging the Danish court for two years. The monster in Hrolf Kraki's saga, however, is quite unlike the Grendel of Beowulf; but it does have characteristics of a more typical dragon, a creature which appears later in Beowulf. Just as Beowulf and Wiglaf slay a dragon at the end of Beowulf, Bodvar Bjarki and Hjalti help each other slay the creature in Denmark.  Proponents of this theory, like J. R. R. Tolkien, argue that both the names Beowulf (lit. "bee-wolf", a kenning for "bear") and Bjarki are associated with bears. Bodvar Bjarki is constantly associated with bears, his father actually being one.  In some of the Hrolf Kraki material, Bodvar Bjarki aids Adils in defeating Adils' uncle Ali, in the Battle on the Ice of Lake Vanern. In Beowulf, the hero Beowulf aids Eadgils in Eadgils' war against Onela. As far as this Swedish adventure is concerned, Beowulf and Bodvar Bjarki are one and the same. This match supports the hypothesis that the adventure with the dragon is also originally derived from the same story. CANNOTANSWER
Beowulf (lit. "bee-wolf", a kenning for "bear")
Hrólfr Kraki (Old Norse: ), Hroðulf, Rolfo, Roluo, Rolf Krage (early 6th century) was a semi-legendary Danish king who appears in both Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian tradition.

Both traditions describe him as a Danish Scylding, the nephew of Hroðgar and the grandson of Healfdene. The consensus view is that Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian traditions describe the same people. Whereas the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf and Widsith do not go further than treating his relationship with Hroðgar and their animosity with Froda and Ingeld, the Scandinavian sources expand on his life as the king at Lejre and on his relationship with Halga, Hroðgar's brother. In Beowulf and Widsith, it is never explained how Hroðgar and Hroðulf are uncle and nephew.

Beowulf

The poem Beowulf introduces Hroðulf as kinsman. Later, the text explains that Hroðulf is Hroðgar's nephew and that "each was true to the other". Hroðgar is given three siblings, brothers Heorogar and Halga and an unnamed sister, all the children of Healfdene and belonging to the royal clan known as the Scyldings. The poem does not indicate which of Hroðgar's siblings is Hroðulf's parent, but later Scandinavian tradition establishes this as Halga.

Hroðgar and queen Wealhþeow had two young sons, Hreðric and Hroðmund, and Hroðulf would be their guardian in case Hroðgar dies. In a deliberately ironic passage it appears that the queen trusts Hroðulf, not suspecting that he will murder her sons to claim the throne for himself:

No existence of any Hreðric or Hroðmund, sons of Hroðgar, has survived in Scandinavian sources (although Hreðric has been suggested to be the same person as Hroerekr/Roricus, a Danish king generally described as a son or successor of Ingjald). This Hroerekr is sometimes said to have been killed by Hrólfr, vindicating the foreshadowing in Beowulf.

The Scyldings were in conflict with another clan or tribe named the Heaðobards led by their king Froda and his son Ingeld. It is in relation to this war that Hroðulf is mentioned in the other Anglo-Saxon poem where he appears, Widsith.

Hrólf and Hroðulf
A common identification is that Hrólf Kraki is the same as the character Hroðulf (Hroðgar's nephew) in Beowulf. There seems to be some foreshadowing in Beowulf that Hroðulf will attempt to usurp the throne from Hroðgar's sons Hreðric and Hroðmund, a deed that also seems to be referred to in Saxo Grammaticus's Gesta Danorum (Book 2), where we find: "... our king, who laid low Rorik, the son of Bok the covetous, and wrapped the coward in death." Rorik is the form we would expect Hreðric to take in Danish and we find personages named Rorik or Hrok or similar in most version of the Hrólf Kraki tradition, but differently accounted for, seemingly indicating that Scandinavian tradition had forgotten who exactly Hreðric/Rorik/Hrok was and various story tellers subsequently invented details to explain references to this personage in older poems. The future slaying of Hreðric may be the occasion of the future burning of the hall of Heorot in the beginning of the poem – though some take it instead to refer to the legendary death of Hrólf Kraki, who in Icelandic sources is said to have died in the burning of his hall by his brother-in-law Hjörvard.

Beowulf and Bjarki
The standard view is that, if Beowulf himself has a 'cognate' character in Rolf Kraki's story, it is Bödvar Bjarki (Bodvar Biarke), who also has a younger companion, Hjalti (Hialte) – perhaps matching the Beowulf character Wiglaf. Beowulf comes from Geatland (= Götaland) and one of Bödvar Bjarki's elder brothers, Thorir, becomes a king of Götaland. Moreover, like Beowulf, Bödvar Bjarki arrives in Denmark from Götaland (Geatland), and upon arriving in Denmark he kills a beast that has been ravaging the Danish court for two years. The monster in Hrólf Krakis saga, however, is quite unlike the Grendel of Beowulf; but it does have characteristics of a more typical dragon, a creature which appears later in Beowulf.
Just as Beowulf and Wiglaf slay a dragon at the end of Beowulf, Bödvar Bjarki and Hjalti help each other slay the creature in Denmark.

Proponents of this theory, like J. R. R. Tolkien, argue that both the names Beowulf (lit. "bee-wolf", a kenning for "bear") and  Bjarki are associated with bears. Bodvar Bjarki is constantly associated with bears, his father actually being one.

In some of the Hrólf Kraki material, Bödvar Bjarki aids Adils in defeating Adils' uncle Áli, in the Battle on the Ice of Lake Vänern. In Beowulf, the hero Beowulf aids Eadgils in Eadgils' war against Onela. As far as this Swedish adventure is concerned, Beowulf and Bödvar Bjarki are one and the same. This match supports the hypothesis that the adventure with the dragon is also originally derived from the same story.

Hrothgar and Hróar
As for the king of the Danes, Hroðgar, he is identical to Hróar or Ro, the uncle of Hrólf Kraki who in other sources outside of Beowulf rules as a co-king with his brother Helgi. But in those sources it is Hróar/Hroðgar who dies before his brother or who departs to Northumberland to rule his wife's kingdom leaving Helgi/Halga the sole rule of Denmark. In Beowulf Halga/Helgi has died and Hroðgar is the primary ruler with Hroðulf son of Halga as a junior co-ruler.

Furthermore, the Swedish kings referenced in Beowulf are adequately matched with the 5th and 6th century Swedish kings in Uppsala (see also Swedish semi-legendary kings):
This has obviously nothing to do with a common origin of the Beowulf and Hrólf Kraki legends in particular but simply reflects a shared genealogical tradition.

Widsith
The poem Widsith also mentions Hroðgar and Hroðulf, but indicates that the feud with Ingeld did not end until the latter was defeated at Heorot:

This piece suggests that the conflict between the Scyldings Hroðgar and Hroðulf on one side, and the Heaðobards Froda and Ingeld on the other, was well known in Anglo-Saxon England. This conflict also appears in Scandinavian sources, but in the Norse tradition the Heaðobards had apparently been forgotten and the conflict is instead rendered as a family feud (see Hrólf Kraki's saga and Skjöldunga saga).

Chronicon Lethrense and Annales Lundenses

The Chronicon Lethrense and the included Annales Lundenses tell that Haldan (Healfdene) had two sons, Helghe (Halga) and Ro (Hroðgar). When Haldan died of old age, Helghe and Ro divided the kingdom so that Ro ruled the land, and Helghe the sea. One day, Helghe arrived in Halland/Lolland and slept with Thore, the daughter of one of Ro's farmers. This resulted in a daughter named Yrse. Much later, he met Yrse, and without knowing that she was his daughter, he made her pregnant with Rolf. Eventually, Helghe found out that Yrse was his own daughter and, out of shame, went east and killed himself.

Both Helghe and Ro being dead, a Swedish king, called Hakon in the Chronicon Lethrense proper, and Athisl in the Annales – corresponding to Eadgils – forced the Danes to accept a dog as king. The dog king was succeeded by Rolf Krage.

Rolf Krage was a big man in body and soul and was so generous that no one asked him for anything twice. His sister Skulda was married against Rolf's will to Hartwar or Hiarwarth (Heoroweard), a German earl of Skåne, but reputedly Rolf had given Skulda to him together with Sweden.

This Hartwar arrived in Zealand with a large army and said that he wanted to give his tribute to Rolf, but killed Rolf together with all his men. Only one survived, Wigg, who played along until he was to do homage to Hartwar. Then, he pierced Hartwar with a sword, and so Hartwar was king for only one morning.

Gesta Danorum
The Book 2 of the Gesta Danorum by Saxo Grammaticus contains roughly the same information as the Chronicon Lethrense and the Annales Lundenses, i.e. that Ro (Hroðgar) and Helgo (Halga) were the son of Haldanus (Healfdene). When Haldanus died of old age, Ro took the land and Helgo the water. One day during his sea roving, Helgo arrived at Thurø, where he found and raped the young girl Thora, which resulted in Urse (Yrsa). When Helgo after many years returned to Thurø, Thora avenged her lost virginity by sending Urse to Helgo who, unknowingly raped his own daughter. This resulted in Roluo, who was a gifted man, both physically and intellectually and as brave as he was tall. After some time Helgo repelled a Swedish invasion, avenged Ro by killing the Swedish king Hothbrodd, and made the Swedes pay tribute. However, he committed suicide due to shame for his incestuous relationship with Urse. Roluo succeeded him.

The new king of Sweden, Athislus (Eadgils), thought that the tribute to the Daner might be smaller if he married the Danish king's mother and so took Urse for a queen. However, after some time, Urse was so upset with the Swedish king's greed that she thought out a ruse to run away from the king and at the same time liberate him of his wealth. She incited Athislus to rebel against Roluo, and arranged so that Roluo would be invited and promised a wealth in gifts.

At the banquet Roluo was at first not recognised by his mother, but when their fondness was commented on by Athisl, the Swedish king and Roluo made a wager where Roluo would prove his endurance. Roluo was placed in front of a fire that exposed him to such heat that finally a maiden could suffer the sight no more and extinguished the fire. Roluo was greatly recompensed by Athisl for his endurance.

When the banquet had lasted for three days, Urse and Roluo escaped from Uppsala, early in the morning in carriages where they had put all the Swedish king's treasure. In order to lessen their burden, and to occupy any pursuing warriors they spread gold in their path (later in the work, this is referred to as "sowing the Fyrisvellir"), although there was a rumour that she only spread gilded copper. When Athislus, who was pursuing the escapers saw that a precious ring was lying on the ground, he bent down to pick it up. Roluo was pleased to see the king of Sweden bent down, and escaped in the ships with his mother.

A young man named Wigg was impressed with Roluo's bodily size and gave him the cognomen Krage, which meant a tall tree trunk used as a ladder. Roluo liked this name and rewarded Wigg with a heavy bracelet. Wigg, then, swore to Roluo to avenge him, if he was killed.

Roluo later defeated Athislus and gave Sweden to young man named Hiartuar (Heoroweard), who also married Roluo's sister Skulde. Skulde, however, did not like the fact that her husband had to pay taxes to Roluo and so incited Hiartuar to rebel against him. They so went to Lejre (a town which Roluo had built) with arms hidden in the ships, under the pretense that they wanted to pay tribute.

They were well-received, but after the banquet, when most people were drunk asleep, the Swedes and the Goths (i.e. the Geats) proceeded to kill everyone at Roluo's residence. After a long battle, involving Roluo's champion Bjarki, who fought in the shape of a spirit bear until he was awakened by his comrade Hjalti, the Geats won and Roluo was killed.

Hiartuar asked Wigg if he wanted to fight for him, and Wigg said yes. Hiartuar wanted to give Wigg a sword, but he insisted on receiving it by taking the hilt. Having the hilt in his hand, Wigg pierced Hiartuar with the sword and so avenged Roluo. Swedes and Geats then rushed forward and killed Wigg. The Swedish king Høtherus (based on the god Höðr), the brother of Athislus, succeeded Roluo and became the king of a combined Sweden and Denmark.

Hrólfr Kraki's saga
In Hrólfr Kraki's saga, Halfdan (Healfdene) had three children, the sons Helgi (Halga) and Hróarr (Hroðgar) and the daughter Signý. The sister was the eldest and married to Sævil Jarl, with whom she had the son Hrókr. Halfdan was murdered by his own brother Fróði (Froda) and the two brothers had to seek refuge with a man called Vivil on an island, until they could avenge their father and kill Fróði.

Whereas Hróarr moved to Northumbria and married the king's daughter, Helgi (i.e. Halga) went to the Saxons wanting to woo their warlike queen Oluf. She was, however, not interested and humiliated Helgi by shaving his head and covering him with tar, while he was asleep, and sending him back to his ship. Some time later, Helgi returned and through a ruse, he kidnapped the queen for a while during which time he made her pregnant.

Having returned to her kingdom, the queen bore a child, a girl which she named Yrsa after her dog. Yrsa was set to live as a shepherd, until she was 12 years old, when she met her father Helgi who fell in love with her, not knowing it was his daughter. Oluf kept quiet about the parentage and saw it as her revenge that Helgi would wed his own daughter. Helgi and Yrsa had the son Hrólfr.

Learning that Helgi and Yrsa lived happily together, queen Oluf travelled to Denmark to tell her daughter the truth. Yrsa was shocked and although Helgi wanted their relationship to remain as it was, Yrsa insisted on leaving him to live alone. She was later taken by the Swedish king Aðils (Eadgils) as his queen, which made Helgi even more unhappy. Helgi went to Uppsala to fetch her, but was killed by Aðils in battle. In Lejre, he was succeeded by his son Hrólfr.

Hrólfr soon assembled twelve great berserkers named Hrómundr harði, Hrólfr skjóthendi, Svipdagr, Beigaðr, Hvítserkr inn hvati, Haklangr, Harðrefill, Haki inn frækni, Vöttr inn mikilaflaði, Starólfr, Hjalti inn hugprúði and Bödvar Bjarki.

After some time, Bödvar Bjarki encouraged Hrólfr to go Uppsala to claim the gold that Aðils had taken from Helgi after the battle. Hrólfr departed with 120 men and his twelve berserkers and during a rest they were tested by a farmer called Hrani (Odin in disguise) who advised Hrólfr to send back all his troops but his twelve berserkers, as numbers would not help him against Aðils.

They were at first well received, but in his hall, Aðils did his best to stop Hrólfr with pit traps and hidden warriors who attacked the Danes. Finally Aðils entertained them but put them to a test where they had to endure immense heat by a fire. Hrólfr and his berserkers finally had enough and threw the courtiers, who were feeding the fire, into the fire and leapt at Aðils. The Swedish king disappeared through a hollow tree trunk that stood in his hall.

Yrsa admonished Aðils for wanting to kill her son, and went to meet the Danes. She gave them a man named Vöggr to entertain them. This Vöggr remarked that Hrólfr had the thin face of a pole ladder, a Kraki. Happy with his new cognomen Hrólfr gave Vöggr a golden ring, and Vöggr swore to avenge Hrólfr if anyone should kill him. Hrólfr and his company were then attacked by a troll in the shape of a boar in the service of Aðils, but Hrólfr's dog Gram killed it.

They then found out that Aðils had set the hall on fire, and so they broke out of the hall, only to find themselves surrounded by heavily armed warriors in the street. After a fight, king Aðils retreated to summon reinforcements.

Yrsa then provided her son with a silver drinking horn filled with gold and jewels and a famous ring, Svíagris. Then she gave Hrólf and his men twelve of the Swedish king's best horses, and all the armour and provisions they needed.

Hrólfr took a fond farewell of his mother and departed over the Fyrisvellir. When they saw Aðils and his warriors in pursuit, they spread the gold behind themselves. Aðils saw his precious Svíagris on the ground and stooped to pick it up with his spear, whereupon Hrólf cut his back with his sword and screamed in triumph that he had bent the back of the most powerful man in Sweden.

Hrólfr lived in peace for some time. However, his half-elven half-sister Skuld was married to Hjörvarðr (Heoroweard) one of Hrólfr's subkings, and she began to turn her husband against Hrólfr. Under the pretext that they would wait three years before paying the accumulated tribute at one time, Skuld assembled a large army which included strong warriors, criminals, elves and norns. She used seiðr (witchcraft) to hide the great muster from Hrólfr and his champions.

They then arrived at Lejre one yule for the midwinter celebrations, with all the weapons hidden in wagons. A fight started and like in the account found in Gesta Danorum, Bödvar Bjarki fought in the shape of a spirit bear until he was awakened by Hjalti. Skuld used her witchcraft to resuscitate her fallen warriors and after a long fight Hrólfr and all his berserkers fell.

Skuld became the ruler of Denmark but did not rule well. Bödvar Bjarki's brothers Elk-Froði and Þorir Houndsfoot went to Denmark to avenge their brother. The Swedish queen Yrsa gave them a large Swedish army headed by Vöggr. They captured Skuld before she could use her magic and tortured her to death. Then they raised a mound for Hrólfr Kraki where he was buried together with his sword Skofnung.

Skjöldunga saga

The Skjöldunga sagaNerman (1925:150) relates that Helgo (Halga) was the king of Denmark together with his brother Roas (Hroðgar). Helgo raped Olava, the queen of the Saxons, and she bore a daughter named Yrsa. The girl later married king Adillus (Eadgils), the king of Sweden, with whom she had the daughter Scullda.

Some years later, Helgo attacked Sweden and captured Yrsa, not knowing that she was his own daughter. He raped her and took her back to Denmark, where she bore the son Rolfo. After a few years, Yrsa's mother, queen Olava, came to visit her and told her that Helgo was her own father. In horror, Yrsa returned to Adillus, leaving her son behind. Helgo died when Rolfo was eight years old, and Rolfo succeeded him, and ruled together with his uncle Roas. Not much later, Roas was killed by his half-brothers Rærecus and Frodo, whereupon Rolfo became the sole king of Denmark.

In Sweden, Yrsa and Adillus married Scullda to the king of Öland, Hiørvardus (also called Hiorvardus and Hevardus, and who corresponds to Heoroweard in Beowulf). As her half-brother Rolfo was not consulted about this marriage, he was infuriated and he attacked Öland and made Hiørvardus and his kingdom tributary to Denmark.

After some time Adillus requested Rolfo's aid against king Ale (Onela) of Oppland, and Rolfo sent him his berserkers. Adillus then won the war, but refused to pay the expected tribute for the help and so Rolfo came to Uppsala to claim his recompense. After surviving some traps, Rolfo fled with Adillus' gold, helped by his mother Yrsa, and "sowed" it on the Fyrisvellir.

Hiørvardus and his queen Skullda rebelled against Rolfo and killed him. However, Hiørvardus did not live long after this and was killed. Rolfo was succeeded by his father's cousin Rörek, who, however, had to leave Skåne to Valdar and could only keep Zealand.

Skáldskaparmál

In the Skáldskaparmál by Snorri Sturluson, the story of Hrólfr Kraki is presented in order to explain why gold was known by the kenning Kraki's seed.

Snorri relates that Hrólfr was the most renowned king in Denmark for valour, generosity and graciousness. One day a poor boy called Vöggr arrived and expressed his surprise that such a great king would look like a little pole (kraki). Hrólfr said that Vöggr had given him a name and gave Vöggr a golden ring in recompense. In gratitude Vöggr swore to Hrólfr to avenge him, should he be killed.

A second tale was when the king of Sweden, Aðils (Eadgils), was in war with a Norwegian king named Áli (Onela), and they fought in the Battle on the Ice of Lake Vänern. Aðils was married to Yrsa, the mother of Hrólfr and so sent an embassy to Hrólfr asking him for help against Áli. He would receive three valuable gifts in recompense. Hrólfr was involved in a war against the Saxons and could not come in person but sent his twelve berserkers. Áli died in the war, and Aðils took Áli's helmet Battle-boar and his horse Raven. The berserkers demanded three pounds of gold each in pay, and they demanded to choose the gifts that Aðils had promised Hrólfr, that is the two pieces of armour that nothing could pierce: the helmet battle-boar and the mailcoat Finn's heritage. They also wanted the famous ring Svíagris. Aðils considered the pay outrageous and refused.

When Hrólfr heard that Aðils refused to pay, he set off to Uppsala. They brought the ships to the river Fyris and rode directly to the Swedish king's hall at Uppsala with his twelve berserkers. Yrsa welcomed them and led them to their lodgings. Fires were prepared for them and they were given drinks. However, so much wood was heaped on the fires that the clothes started to burn away from their bodies. Hrólfr and his men had enough and threw the courtiers on the fire. Yrsa arrived and gave them a horn full of gold, the ring Svíagris and asked them to flee. As they rode over the Fyrisvellir, they saw Aðils and his men pursuing them. The fleeing men threw their gold on the plain so that the pursuers would stop to collect the gold. Aðils, however, continued the chase on his horse Slöngvir. Hrólfr then threw Svíagris and saw how Aðils stooped down to pick up the ring with his spear. Hrólfr exclaimed that he had seen the mightiest man in Sweden bend his back.

Ynglinga saga
The Skjöldunga saga was used by Snorri Sturluson as a source when he told the story of Aðils (Eadgils) and Yrsa, in his Ynglinga saga, a part of the Heimskringla. What remains of the Skjöldunga saga is a Latin summary by Arngrímur Jónsson, and so the two versions are basically the same, the main difference being that Arngrímur's version is more terse.

Snorri relates that Aðils betook himself to pillage the Saxons, whose king was Geirþjófr and queen Alof the Great. The king and consort were not at home, and so Aðils and his men plundered their residence at ease driving cattle and captives down to the ships. One of the captives was a remarkably beautiful girl named Yrsa, and Snorri writes that everyone was soon impressed with the well-mannered, pretty and intelligent girl. Most impressed was Aðils who made her his queen.

Some years later, Helgi (Halga), who ruled in Lejre, attacked Sweden and captured Yrsa. He raped Yrsa, his own daughter, and took her back to Lejre, where she bore him the son Hrólfr. When the boy was three years of age, Yrsa's mother, queen Alof of Saxony, came to visit her and told her that her husband Helgi was her own father. Horrified, Yrsa returned to Aðils, leaving her son behind, and stayed in Sweden for the rest of her life. When Hrólfr was eight years old, Helgi died during a war expedition and Hrólf was proclaimed king.

Snorri finishes his account by briefly mentioning that the Skjöldunga saga contained an extensive account of how Hrólf came to Uppsala and sowed gold on the Fyrisvellir.

Gróttasöngr
 The Gróttasöngr contains a stanza (nr 22) sung by the giantesses Fenja and Menja. It only names Yrsa and the situation that her son and brother (i.e. Hroðulf) will avenge Fródi (Froda):

This piece cannot refer to Hrólfr Kraki's saga where Froda was the half-brother of Healfdene because this Froda was killed by Hroðgar (and therefore they avenged him). It can, however, be interpreted through the Skjöldunga saga in which Hroðulf's uncle Hroðgar was murdered by his half-brother Froda.

Either Frodi's death is the one they want to avenge, or they seek vengeance for Hroðgar, killed by his half brother. The Danish equivalent of hefna is at hævne, meaning revenge (or avenging), in this case for Fródi's murder, indicating no relation to Hroðgars death, but to Frodi's. 'Kin' and 'kinsmen' share a certain reference to blood relation, yet 'brother' can also have the meaning of either: 'one of us' and 'our tribesmen', or simply 'son and brother'. After being recognized for his deeds, Yrsa will see Hroðulf as her son once more.

Gautreks saga
Hrólfr Kraki is mentioned briefly in Gautreks saga, written around 1300, when the adventurer Ref comes to him with a gift consisting of two dogs. In return for this gift Hrólfr gives him a helmet and a chainmail, both made of red gold.

 Modern references 
Danish playwright Johannes Ewald wrote a play about Rolf Krage (1770), based on Saxo's version of the story in Gesta Danorum. Danish poet Adam Oehlenschläger wrote a poem, Helge: et Digt (1814).

The American writer Poul Anderson used this story in his novel Hrolf Kraki's Saga (1973).  Anderson's story begins in earlier generations and more or less follows the version in Hrolfr Kraki's Saga described above.  The book was well received by many fantasy fans.

"Sellic Spell', a fictionalized treatment of the story by J. R. R. Tolkien, was published in Beowulf: A Translation and Commentary on May 22, 2014, Tolkien himself explaining that his was "a limited...attempt to reconstruct the Anglo-Saxon tale that lies behind the folk-tale element in Beowulf".

The Danish Navy's first ironclad warship was named Rolf Krake.

Notes

Bibliography and external links
 English translations of the Old Norse Hrólfs saga kraka ok kappa hans :
 The Saga of Hrolf Kraki and his Champions. Trans. Peter Tunstall (2003). Available at  Norse saga: The Saga of Hrolf Kraki and  Northvegr: The Saga of Hrolf Kraki.
 The Saga of King Hrolf Kraki. Trans. Jesse L. Byock (1998).  London: Penguin. . Selection from this translation are available at The Viking Site: Excerpts from The Saga of King Hrolf Kraki.
 "King Hrolf and his champions" included in Eirik the Red: And Other Icelandic Sagas. Trans. Gwyn Jones (1961).  Oxford: Oxford World's Classics, Oxford University Press. .
 Original texts''':
 Hrólfs saga kraka ok kappa hans in Old Norse from heimskringla.no
 Hrólfs saga kraka ok kappa hans in Old Norse from heimskringla.no
 University of Oregon: Norse: Fornaldarsögur norðurlanda: Hrólfs saga kraka ok kappa hans
 Sagnanet: Hrólfs saga kraka
 Anderson, Poul (1973). Hrolf Kraki's Saga. New York: Ballantine Books. . New York: Del Rey Books. .  Reprinted 1988 by Baen Books, .
 Literary Encyclopedia entry
Birger Nerman, 1925, Det svenska rikets uppkomst (in Swedish)Beowulf:
 Beowulf read aloud in Old English
 Modern English translation by Francis Barton Gummere
 Modern English translation by John Lesslie Hall
 Ringler, Dick. Beowulf: A New Translation For Oral Delivery, May 2005. Searchable text with full audio available, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison Libraries.
 Several different Modern English translationsChronicon Lethrense and Annales Lundense:
 Chronicon Lethrense and Annales Lundense in translation by Peter Tunstall
 The same translation at Northvegr
 Book 2 of Gesta Danorum at the Online and Medieval & Classical library
 The Relation of the Hrolfs Saga Kraka and the Bjarkarimur to Beowulf by Olson, 1916, at Project Gutenberg
the Ynglinga saga in translation by Samuel Laing, 1844, at Northvegr
The Gróttasöngr in Thorpe's translation
Skáldskaparmál:
Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda in the original language
CyberSamurai Encyclopedia of Norse Mythology: Prose Edda - Skáldskaparmál (English)
CyberSamurai Encyclopedia of Norse Mythology: Prose Edda - Skáldskaparmál (Old Norse)
Malone, Kemp. Studies in Heroic Legend and in Current Speech. S.  Einarsson & N.E. Eliason, eds. Copenhagen: Rosenkilde & Bagger, 1959.
Lukman, Niels Clausen. Skjoldunge und Skilfinge. Hunnen- und Heruler-könige in Ostnordischer Überlieferung. Classica et Mediaevalia, dissertationes III. Copenhagen: Gyldendalske Boghandel Nordisk Forlag, 1943.
Hemmingsen, Lars. By Word of Mouth: the origins of Danish legendary history - studies in European learned and popular traditions of Dacians and Danes before A.D. 1200. Ph.D. dissertation, University of Copenhagen (Dept. of Folklore), 1995.
Anderson, Carl Edlund. Formation and Resolution of Ideological Contrast in the Early History of Scandinavia''. Ph.D. thesis, University of Cambridge, Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse & Celtic (Faculty of English).  
Overing, Gillian R., and Marijane Osborn.  'Landscape of Desire: Partial Stories of the Medieval Scandinavian World.'  Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1994: 1-37. (possible sailing times and the account of a "Beowulfian" voyage on the Cattegat)

6th-century monarchs in Europe
English heroic legends
Characters in Beowulf
Heroes in Norse myths and legends
People whose existence is disputed
Scyldings
Breca (sometimes spelled Breoca or Brecca) was a Bronding who, according to the Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf, was Beowulf's childhood friend. Breca defeated Beowulf in what, by consensus, is described as a swimming match.

While dining, Unferth alludes to the story of their contest as a reproach to Beowulf's impulsiveness and foolhardiness, and Beowulf then relates it in detail, explaining how he needed to stop and defeat multiple sea monsters (nicors) during the match, so, although he arrived at the goal after Breca, his was the more worthy journey.

In line 522 of Beowulf, Breca is identified as lond Brondinga (“of the Brondings’ land").  Breca is also mentioned in Widsith, an Anglo-Saxon poem (also known, usually by the translations of Benjamin Thorpe, as The Skôp, or The Gleema's Tale, or The Skald's Tale) known only from a 10th-century copy, as the ruler (in some unspecified previous century) of the Brondings (line 25 of Widsith):
 Cassere weold Creacum, ond Caelic Finnum, ...     Caesar rules the Greeks, and Caelic the Finns, ...
 Meaca Myrgingum, Mearchealf Hundingum,              Meaca the Myrinings, Marchalf the Hundings,
 þeodric weold Froncum, þyle Rondingum,                Theodoric ruled the Franks, Thyle the Rondings,
 Breoca Brondingum, Billing Wernum, .....                  Breca the Brondings, Billing the Wernas, .....

This is presumably the same Breca as mentioned in Beowulf. In Beowulf, Breca is further identified, in line 524, as sunu Bēanstānes (“Beanstan’s son”), as if the name Breca and the mention of Beanstan would be familiar enough to Unferth's audience to adequately identify him (although Beanstan is not otherwise mentioned in any surviving document ).

It was long ago theorized that the Brondings and Breca lived on the island of Brännö outside of modern Gothenburg (the second largest city in Sweden). On the other hand, from the mention in Widsith, with the Brondings mentioned immediately before the Wernas (and the Wernas supposedly being the Varini on the Elbe), it has been suggested that the Brondings might have located near them, perhaps in Mecklenburg or Pomerania.  It has even been suggested that the Brondings, whose name suggests the crashing of waves, are entirely mythical.

The nature of the contest
Some scholars have debated whether Beowulf and Breca competed in a swimming match or a rowing match. Ambiguities in the translation of Beowulf have left scholars with multiple interpretations for the Beowulf-Breca “swimming” episode. Karl P. Wentersdorf of Xavier University writes, “An adventure in which two youths spend seven days and nights swimming at sea is more than extraordinary, particularly since they are carrying heavy iron swords and wearing cumbersome coats of chain mail.” Such a remarkable feat would not, however, be very incongruous with the poem's other portrayals of Beowulf's heroic prowess.  Unferth describes this as a foolhardy contest or race, but when Beowulf offers his own version of events, it becomes a youthful confidence-building or team-building shared challenge, much like a camping or mountaineering trip, in which the two participants endeavored to stay together rather than one leave the other far behind.

According to Wentersdorf, the trouble with translation “results from the ambiguity of the word sund in the lines ymb sund flite (line 508) and he þeaet sunde oferflat (lines 517-518).” Sund, though often translated by scholars as “swim” could, through evolution of language, be interpreted as “rowing”. Beowulf and Breca could have been rowing together or competing to see who was the more prodigious rower. The Old English term rēon, used twice in this portion of Beowulf (namely lines 513 and 540), is not translated as “swim” in any other Anglo-Saxon poetry. The kennings earmum þehton (line 514, þeccean “to cover, conceal”) and mundum brugdon (line 515a, bregdan “to pull, move quickly, swing, draw”), used by Unferth to describe Beowulf's match against Breca, are applicable to both swimming and rowing.  Twice in this portion (lines 514 and 540) that sund is used is in the same lines as rēon, and both times forming the three-word phrase on sund rēon, which would seem to mean "rowing on the sea" – but there is an Anglo-Saxon word, onsund, which means “sound, physically strong, uninjured”, in most transcriptions of the Beowulf text it does not occur, but in the original manuscript, at line 513 on and sund have apparently been rewritten after being scraped from the parchment and seem slightly closer together than two separate words ordinarily are (although Zupitza's transcription treats them as two separate words), and in line 540 the manuscript clearly uses onsund as a single word and Zupitza transcribes it as a single word – although he drew a thin line of separation after on, which may indicate that he did not know that onsund was a word with a meaning of its own. Onsund is found in a lot of other Anglo-Saxon artifacts. In Icelandic, at least, sund requires a preposition, not found here in Beowulf, to mean swimming rather than merely something aquatic.

Unferth also uses the phrases wada cunnedon (line 509), “made trial of the waters”, and glidon ofer garsecg (line 515), “glided over the sea” during his description of Beowulf's match against Breca. Both terms are equally applicable to swimming and rowing. Rowing was, as much as swimming or water-wrestling, an essential skill for warriors during the Anglo-Saxon era, so a rowing competition between Beowulf and Breca would not have been out of the question. Although there are Nordic tales of swimming competitions, no other has characteristics of such extreme duration and danger as this – which, strictly speaking, was not a race but merely a testing of their own strength.  Moreover, the duration of the challenge seems to make rowing more likely than swimming; seven days and nights immersed in Scandinavian waters, in winter no less (line 516), evidently without food nor an opportunity to go ashore for sleep or warmth, seems lethal (and certainly more arduous than Diana Nyad’s five attempts – only the last one successful – to swim from Cuba to Miami, each effort lasting only 2½ days).

Additionally, the text refers to Beowulf as fleotan (line 543) – “floating”, and being on sidne sæ (line 508), and on deóp wæter (line 510) – “upon the wide sea” and “upon the deep water” and similar expressions—putting him consistently atop or above the water, rather than in or under the water. In line 515, he is described as having glidon ofer garsecg – “glided over / above the surf”; again, an image more in keeping with rowing than swimming. Further, in line 581, fatigued from his struggles with the sea monsters, Beowulf was carried by the currents to the land of the Finns (presumably a great distance) – and here the original manuscript's text clearly reads wudu weallendu – wudu, a word related to “wood” and often meaning “boat” (or perhaps “raft”), as it does in lines 216, 298 and elsewhere, so that Beowulf was carried to the Finns on a tossing, quaking boat;  however, several editors and translators saw an obscure difficulty (between the masculine wudu and the neuter weallendu) and insisted on changing the wudu (“boat”) to wadu (“water”), making it appear that Beowulf was carried to the Finns on “surging water” (and, naturally, translators relying on the printed Anglo-Saxon text worked up by such editors were innocently led to the same result).

Significance of the story 

The story of the aquatic adventure with Breca is introduced into the Beowulf saga for a number of reasons. First, we are introduced to Unferth, evidently a significant member of Hrothgar's court, but we are immediately encouraged to dislike him, because we are told he is motivated by envy and wishes to embarrass Hrothgar's honored guest. Second, it enables the introduction of a separate story (coming before the confrontation with Grendel) attesting, after a fashion, to Beowulf's strength, courage, and resourcefulness. Third, it tells us that Beowulf has already overcome monsters other than Grendel – several of them – so that he is suited for the challenge he faces. When he tells his side of the story, Beowulf manages to include some rude rebuffs to Unferth (the mention of Unferth killing his kin may be nothing more than slanging, just as modern American patois uses an accusation of ‘a particular form of incest’). Further in the saga, when Heriot is being attacked by Grendel's Mother, we shall see Unferth approach Beowulf in humility, offering his own family's heirloom sword.

In popular culture
 Breca appears as a main character, portrayed by Gísli Örn Garðarsson, in Beowulf: Return to the Shieldlands, which depicts him and Beowulf as having become companions as adults after Beowulf saved Breca from a lynch mob.

Notes 

English heroic legends
Breca
Literary characters Wiglaf (Proto-Norse: *Wīgalaibaz, meaning "battle remainder";  ) is a character in the Anglo-Saxon epic poem Beowulf. He is the son of Weohstan, a Swede of the Wægmunding clan who had entered the service of Beowulf, king of the Geats. Wiglaf is called Scylfing as a metonym for Swede, as the Scylfings were the ruling Swedish clan. While in the service of the Scylfing Onela, king of the Swedes, Weohstan killed the rebel prince Eanmund and took his sword as a trophy; Wiglaf later inherited it.  Weohstan belonged to the clan of the Wægmundings, the same clan Beowulf's father Ecgþeow belonged to; so Wiglaf is Beowulf's distant cousin, and his only living relative at the time of Beowulf's death.

Scholars have proposed various interpretations of Wiglaf's role in the poem, but agree that he is important, and that he was Beowulf's nephew, a key relationship in heroic tales of the period.

Wiglaf has a counterpart in Scandinavian sources named Hjalti who serves as a side-kick to Beowulf's counterpart Bödvar Bjarki, and in Bjarkamál, Hjalti makes speeches comparable to those made by Wiglaf in Beowulf.

Beowulf

Wiglaf first appears in Beowulf at line 2602, as a member of the band of thanes who go with Beowulf to seek out the dragon that has attacked Geat-Land. This is the first time Wiglaf has gone to war at Beowulf's side.  He is called a "praise-worthy shield-warrior", a "prince of the Scylfings", and mæg ælfheres, "kinsman of Ælfhere."

When Beowulf damages his sword wounding the dragon and is burned by the dragon's fire, Wiglaf is the only man of Beowulf's band to overcome his fear of the dragon. He rebukes the other thanes and goes to Beowulf's aid crying words of encouragement.

Wiglaf does not retreat, though his shield is consumed by fire.  When Beowulf wounds the dragon a second time, striking so hard his sword shatters, Wiglaf strikes at the open wound with his own sword, tearing at the dragon's throat so it can no longer breathe fire. His hand is badly burned, but his attack allows Beowulf to close and kill the dragon. The poet says of Wiglaf, "So should a man be, a thane at need!"

At Beowulf's command, Wiglaf gathers treasure from the dragon's lair and piles it where Beowulf can see it.  The dying Beowulf tells Wiglaf to "watch his people's needs" (by which he means that Wiglaf is to become the next king.) He tells Wiglaf to build him a funeral mound and gives Wiglaf his rings, helm, and mail-shirt. He says that Wiglaf is now "the last of the Wægmundings."

The other eleven men that came with Beowulf gather around the body, and Wiglaf condemns them for their failure of duty and declares that he will order them exiled. He sends a messenger to tell the other Geats what has happened. When the Geats have gathered, Wiglaf addresses them, mourning Beowulf's death and expressing dismay at the bleak future of the Geats without Beowulf to guard them.

Wiglaf's last appearance is at line 3120, where he chooses seven thanes to help him push the dragon's corpse over the cliff into the sea, loot the lair, and lay the treasure on Beowulf's funeral pyre.

Significance

Flees, and turns back 

R. R. Lumiansky notes that while a common interpretation is that Wiglaf is the only one of Beowulf's companions who does not flee, Wiglaf actually flees along with the cowardly companions, as he must be far away from the fight when he addresses the cowards. In this interpretation, Wiglaf then remembers his duty of kinship and the bravery of his father Weohstan. This brings a feeling of remorse, and he tries without success to persuade the companions; he returns to the fight alone. He then feels moved to encourage Beowulf, an action that could be seen as surprising from a youth facing his first fight to a heroic King, and at last to join the fight against the dragon.

A Wægmunding, Beowulf's nephew 

Norman E. Eliason notes that Wiglaf is a member of the Waegmundings, a Swedish clan. In his view, this is "of crucial significance". As he dies, Beowulf gives Wiglaf his armour and torque, which Eliason glosses as "very likely a royal emblem he had worn about his neck", noting that if he had had a son, he would have given this emblem to him. However, the poet, at this crucial moment, leaves the relationship between the two men vague, rather than doing the conventional thing in heroic verse of making it an uncle-nephew relationship, as scholars like Larry Benson have assumed, and like that of Beowulf and Hygelac. Eliason however disagrees with the widespread scholarly interpretation that Beowulf, too, was a Waegmunding, finding the suggestion that he was half-Swedish "unthinkable or even ridiculous". But, he writes, the poet "makes it clear that as a Geat Beowulf had to take vengeance on Onela and that as a Waegmunding he was entitled to Onela's favour". This leads Eliason to suggest that Beowulf's sister married Weohstan the Waegmunding, so Wiglaf is Beowulf's nephew after all.

Allegory 

Richard North revisits the old hypothesis that the Beowulf Wiglaf, and indeed the whole poem, was commissioned by the historical King Wiglaf of Mercia as a memorial to King Beornwulf, at the same time presenting himself as successor; he had been an ealdorman, not the King's son, so the succession could have been in doubt. He notes the resemblance of the names (Beornwulf, Wiglaf) to the heroes in the poem, claiming that Wiglaf cannot be traced to any Scandinavian source.

The scholar Kevin Kiernan likens the survival of the Beowulf manuscript to Wiglaf's survival of the last fight of Beowulf the hero, noting however that while Wiglaf's efforts were all in vain, the manuscript somehow limped on.

Etymology 

Wiglaf's name appears to be an example of etymological refraction. The name is composed of two Old English elements, namely wig (fight, battle, war) and laf (what or who is left). When Wiglaf first enters battle alongside his lord, the poem is structured to reflect greater significance on his name. The separation and reversal of the elements of the name in the manuscript suggest that the name "Wiglaf" signifies "the inheritor of strength" or "one that is fulfilled through battle", according to the scholars Patrick J. Gallacher and Helen Damico. 

An alternate understanding of the name in the context of a typical dithematic name, where the two elements may be as independent in meaning as separate names, "laf" could be read as "one who remains, one who survives or endures". Gallacher and Damico have acknowledged this alternative interpretation but feel that it is unnecessary to argue that one discernible element within a name submerges another as all interpretations are collectively useful in the pursuit of deep analysis.

Cultural references

In the 1981 animated film Grendel Grendel Grendel, Wiglaf (voiced by Ernie Bourne) is portrayed as one of Hrothgar's thanes rather than an ally of Beowulf, and is killed by Grendel.

In the 2007 film Beowulf (directed by Robert Zemeckis), Wiglaf's role (played by Brendan Gleeson) is larger; he is present in the film from the first introduction of Beowulf and the Geats to the end when Beowulf vanquishes the dragon and dies. The film makes Wiglaf into a sidekick, the second-in-command and the best friend of the epic hero.

In the 2018 Harry Potter fan-made film Voldemort: Origins of the Heir, the descendant of Rowena Ravenclaw is named Wiglaf Sigurdsson.

See also
 The Wanderer

Notes

References

Primary
This list shows the parts of the Beowulf poem under discussion.

Secondary

Characters in Beowulf
English heroic legends
People whose existence is disputed